


More Than Okay

by Sapphic Nerd (bdubs1102)



Category: Home and Away (TV)
Genre: Alex is stubborn, F/F, Happy Ending, One-Shot, That’s really a two-shot, Willow won’t let her run away, willex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:35:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26415754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bdubs1102/pseuds/Sapphic%20Nerd
Summary: Willow and Alex are actresses on a popular soap opera. Their characters are falling for each other on-screen while they try to navigate real feelings developing for each other off-set.
Relationships: Willow Harris/Alex Neilson
Comments: 4
Kudos: 18





	More Than Okay

**Author's Note:**

> I have this fascination with actresses falling for each other and trying to figure out what to so about it. I’ll probably revisit this trope with other fandoms at some point, too. Still have more to explore but I love #willex and wanted to work with them a bit today. Hope you enjoy!

“Cut.” The Director’s frustrated sigh echoed across the small space. “Let’s take 5. Give our ladies a moment to work out the kinks.”

Alex flung her head back, satisfied by the dull thud it made against the wall behind her. She closed her eyes and wished for the day to be over. Why did they have to film this scene today, of all days?

Short nails tapped the wall beside her head and she peeked one eye open to see that Willow still had not moved from her mark. Meaning, she still had Alex pinned to the wall with both hands on either side of her head.

Willow pursed her lips and raised both eyebrows.

Amazing how she could say so much without saying anything at all. Ugh. Alex closed her eyes again and prayed Willow would back off. 

No such luck. 

“What the hell, Alex?” No such luck at all. 

Alex chose not to answer. She inhaled a deep breath through her nose, puffed out her cheeks, and let the exhale force its way slowly out of her body. Maybe it would take some of her headache out with it. Today sucked. This scene sucked. She sucked. Willow... was amazing. Why did she have to be amazing? This sucked. 

Gentle fingers caressed her face as they pushed a stray hair behind her ear. 

“I’m not moving, so you might as well look at me.” Even with her eyes closed, she could sense Willow’s stubborn grin trying to win over her frustrated glare. 

No. She didn’t want to look at Willow. She didn’t want to feel her warm body pressed all along her own. She didn’t want to wish she could reverse their positions and kiss Willow until they both forgot their names. She was a professional, damnit. And, she could film a stupid drunk kissing scene without losing her head. 

“Baby, please?”

The whispered words in her ear made her spring from the wall like she’d been stung by something, which knocked Willow back a few steps. Good. She could think clearer with less proximity between them.

“Don’t.” She’d meant it to be firm, but there was a hint of pleading on the end that made it sound like she wasn’t quite serious.

Willow’s expression always said more than her words ever could. In this moment, her face shifted from shocked to hurt to angry in less than a second. Shit. 

The next thing she knew, Willow had grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the room, throwing a quick, “We’re gonna need more than 5 minutes” behind them to whomever was listening. Ugh. The Director was going to be pissed. They had a schedule to keep. 

Willow’s footsteps pounded on the pavement and Alex used every muscle in her just a bit longer legs to keep up. She didn’t even try to pull her hand free. The iron grip Willow had on it seemed like a clear sign she was going whether she liked it or not. Where they were going was a different question altogether.

*****

Breathe in. Breathe out. Do not start yelling. Just keep walking. 

Willow kept a running pep talk going in her head while she dragged Alex along behind her. They were on the set of what was supposed to be the hospital which meant there were plenty of hallways and doors. Unfortunately, most of the doors either didn’t open at all or led to the outside of the set. She needed a real room. Four walls and a roof where they could have a serious chat without one of the nosey extras overhearing. Ah. There. Storage closet. She’d had a scene in it last week for a different episode and knew it would be private enough. She tugged Alex inside the room, slammed the door, and put her hands on her hips. Breathe in. Breathe out. Do not explode. She raised her eyebrows at Alex again and hoped the unimpressed look she was going for worked. 

“What the hell, Willow?” Alex rubbed her wrist. 

“I asked you first.” She grabbed Alex’s hand and searched her wrist for marks. She hadn’t grabbed her that hard, had she? 

Alex yanked her hand back and crossed her arms, a sure sign that she was uncomfortable. She stared at the ground and remained quiet.

Okay. So, pushing wasn’t working. Willow tucked her hands in her hoodie pockets to keep them from reaching for Alex. It was clear she didn’t want to be touched. 

“Alex, talk to me.” She made sure it sounded like a gentle request, not a demand.

Alex bit her lip, something she did when she was nervous. She must not know it made Willow want to kiss her. 

“You’re an amazing actress and you’ve fit in perfectly on this show in the last few weeks. I’ve never seen you freeze up like you did today.” That was all true. Alex signed-on as a temporary role to be a love interest for Willow’s character and help build her story. But she’d molded right into the crew like she’d been there from the beginning. Everyone loved her on and off set, her timing was great, and dialogue flowed between characters with ease. Until today. Today, Alex was missing her marks, asking for lines, and froze anytime Willow touched her. Ah. 

“It’s me.” Alex still hadn’t spoken but looked up at that, curiosity in her eyes.

“You were fine in the scene with Jasmine this morning.” Oh wow. How did she miss that before? “What the hell, Alex?” Yes, they were back to that. And she was getting irritated again. “What did I do wrong?”

Alex stepped forward and reached for her arm but she shrugged it off. She couldn’t think straight when Alex was touching her. Straight. Ha. She was standing in a literal closet discussing why her cast-mate was freezing up in a scene where they had to undress each other. There was nothing straight about it. 

“I’m sorry if I came on too strong last night, but that took a lot of guts and you turned me down. I have feelings for you. Real feelings. And I know—” she sniffed. No no no. Do not start crying. “—I know you feel the same. So, I don’t understand why you keep pushing me away.” Her eyes began to water, but she refused to let the tears fall.

“Okay. Look. I don’t know if you’re really serious or not.” Alex bit out.

Ouch. Slapping Willow in the face might have hurt less. 

“What?” How could Alex think she wasn’t serious? She was standing there almost begging Alex to give her a chance. Couldn’t she see how hard that was?

“I‘m gay, Willow. I keep my relationships quiet and I do not date coworkers. My career comes first. So, I didn’t come here expecting to meet anyone. You kind of blindsided me.” A tiny grin made its way to her beautiful face. “And, I feel like...maybe... you’re wrapped up in our characters and feeling some of what they feel for each other, rather than what you feel for me, the person outside the character. You barely even know me.” The grin fell away and was replaced by a look of disbelief and uncertainty. 

“Wow, that is offensive—“ 

“Not to mention I’m not going to be here long. What happens in a few weeks when I leave and you’re still here filming this soap for the next ten years? How would that even work?” Alex was on a roll now. The questions kept coming and Willow didn’t have the answers. She was right. What would happen when Alex’s contract was up? Where would she go next? She hadn’t thought that far ahead. She leaned against a shelf and scuffed her toe on the ground. 

“I really like you, Willow.” A warm hand touched her cheek and turned her head to meet Alex’s eyes. “You’re gorgeous, smart, and fun. But I can’t take the risk. I’m sorry.”

Alex was gone before she could respond. The click of the door handle echoed in the small space, bouncing around like the jumbled thoughts in her head. 

*****

Somehow, the Director bought Alex’s excuse of lady problems and not feeling comfortable stripping today due to bloating and feeling icky. She knew she was pushing it as the new kid, but he thankfully let her off the hook, and they moved to a different scene. 

She just couldn’t do it today. Everything was too raw. Last night had been amazing. She and Willow had dinner, hung around for a few drinks, and enjoyed a nice night together. It wasn’t until Willow had her pinned to a wall that she realized how far she’d let this go. Did she like Willow? Yes. Did she want Willow? So so much. But she was not a hit it and quit it kind of girl and she sure as hell wasn’t signing up to be a straight girl’s experiment in all things Sapphic, no matter how gorgeous she was. 

The door to her trailer burst open, shaking her from her thoughts. A flustered Willow stomped up the stairs and slammed the door behind her. 

“We need to talk.”

Alex sighed. “We have talked. What more is there to say?”

“No. You talked.” Willow shook her head. She took a deep breath and looked Alex right in the eye. 

“Look. I know you didn’t come here looking for anything.” She licked her lips, which drew Alex’s attention to them. She had such kissable lips. “But, I didn’t, either. And yet, here we are.” She took a step forward and reached for Alex’s hand, holding it in both of her own. “I really like you. And yes, this is new for me. I’ve never felt this way for a woman before but that doesn’t make my feelings any less valid. I am not just wrapped up in my character’s head— which rude, by the way— and no, I can’t promise this is all going to work out and we’ll ride off into the sunset someday. No one can know that. But, what I can promise is that I’m here right now.” She tugged on Alex’s hand and forced her to stand up. “These feelings are not going to go away, and I’d like to explore them with you while we can. We can figure out what happens after your contract when we get to that point.” 

Throughout her heartfelt speech, Willow had pulled Alex closer and closer until they were mere inches apart. She was almost whispering by the end.

Alex wondered if Willow could feel her heart racing. She bit her lip so she wouldn’t interrupt. 

Willow’s eyes tracked the movement and darkened, but she continued. “If you could just... take a leap of faith with me... I think we could be amazing together.” 

Thoughts crowded Alex’s mind, tossing and turning the pros and cons, and asking herself over and over if this was worth the inevitable heartbreak. Was it worth it? Was Willow worth it?

She looked down into Willow’s shining eyes, loving the small height difference that allowed her to do so. This woman was everything. And, that terrified her. But was she worth it? She sighed, defeated. Of course, she was worth it. 

“Okay.”

Willow’s brows furrowed like she hadn’t heard correctly. Then, her entire face lit up in a megawatt smile and she bounced on her toes. “Okay?”

“We’ll try it. See where it goes. I’m crazy about you and I can’t imagine seeing you every day, not being able to touch you.” She tucked a stray hair behind Willow’s ear and trailed her finger’s down Willow’s jaw. “Or not being able to kiss you.” She bent her head and met Willow’s waiting lips.

The kiss started soft and sweet, but grew in intensity. It was like they were each putting everything they couldn’t say into the kiss and making sure the other knew exactly how they felt. 

When the need to breathe finally forced them to pull back, Alex had one hand tangled in Willow’s hair and one between her shoulder blades keeping her held tightly to her own body. She looked down and saw the desire she felt being reflected back at her but she still had one question. 

“So... ‘baby’?” She quirked an eyebrow. Willow had called her ‘baby’ earlier on the set. Thinking about it now made her stomach do somersaults. 

Willow grinned so wide her eyes crinkled, and her cheeks turned an adorable shade of pink. “It just... came out.” She tried to hide her face in Alex’s shoulder. “Is that... alright?” She mumbled against her shirt.

Alex used the hand still in Willow’s hair to gently pull her back and regain her attention. 

“Yeah.” Her smile felt like it was trying to stretch beyond her face. “That’s more than okay.” 

She leaned down and kissed Willow again, grateful neither of them had to be back on the set for a few hours. They were going to need it.


End file.
